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I talked to Richuel Massey last night. He said that all the speculation about him going to Texas was just that - speculation. He said he actually had "sort of committed" to UT when he was a junior, but when they got a commitment from Eric Hardeman, that gave them Hardeman, Cedric Benson, Selvin Young as the headliners in a crowded backfield. He was quick to point out that he is not afraid of competition in any way, and that he thinks he can play with any of those guys. But he saw a potential numbers crunch in Austin, and when he met Coach Bennett and Coach Gush, he was sold. His comments about Coach Bennett and Coach Gush sounded like the coaches should hire this kid as their agent - he is completely sold on them and firmly believes they are going to do great things at SMU.

He also said he has 17 formal scholarship offers. Among the schools that tried to gain his services: Texas, Texas A&M, Miami, Florida, Wisconsin, Colorado, and Oregon. He said he is sure SMU is the place for him, though, and he's eager to get up here in the summer to start working with his new teammates.

Massey had a lot more to say, things that will go into the <A HREF="http://www.PonyFans.com" TARGET=_blank>www.PonyFans.com</A> recruiting wrap-up. He sounds like an amazing young man, and should have a stellar career with the Ponies. Be sure to read the PonyFans.com recruiting wrapup after all the signings are official.

That's quite a list of schools that was chasing him - sounds like he's every bit as good as advertised. I wish the UT coaches would leave him alone, though. He's a Mustang!

It's been reported down here that Florida also offered him a scholarship.

I've heard several knowledgable opinions that if Massey went to a 5A school (with big school competition), he'd rate a hell of a lot higher than 3-stars.

I'd have to believe that's true. This guy's numbers are off the charts. And looking at that list of national powers that offered him, it's clear he's a top-level prospect.

That list of schools that offered him sounds like you're reading off the AP Top 25 list.

This list is even better than Marcus Mosley's list a few years ago. Who was the last Mustang to draw such heavy pursuit from big-time schools?

Reggie Dupard maybe?

...actually Aldidge was pretty highy recruited as was Chris Cunningham but before that maybe you would have to back to David Richards who was probably the No. 1 OLM in the country circa 1984

Bill Jones, who I believe was a freshman in 1986. and Jon Hummel in '87. They were both recruited by the entire country. Jones transferred to Southwest Texas, then played a few years for the Kansas City Chiefs. Hummell I never heard about again after the DP. Lynn James was a qb in Jones class that I think was recruited by a long list of schools, but I couldnt swear to that. Tre Giller and Matt McCarthy were offensive linemen that were recruited by alot of schools, they transferred to Oklahoma and Penn State, respectively. I'm not sure about Michael Bowen, he walked on here in 87 because we didnt have a scholarship to give him, but I think he was recruited by more than a few schools. He went to Georgia after the DP, then came back to SMU for his senior year.
Between then and now, I supposed Marcus Mosely, Corlin Donaldson, and Jack Brewer were our most highly sought after signees.

Giller actually transferred from OU to SMU, didn't he?

Who else recruited Brewer besides Texas Tech? If I remember right, he was committed to Tech until the night before signing day, then switched to us.

...let's not go overboard with our excitement about Massey-he's a great prospect especially for SMU but there are about 5-6 others in Texas who were probably more highly sought than Massey even in a down year for runnungbacks in Texas. There's a reason that UT sought other kids over Massey. I have a slight concern about why Massey didn't dominate as much as I had hoped in a 3A school-but its hard to gauge that without know how strong his team was. Same with Meeks and Phillips quality recruits but not national recruits or sure things.

[This message has been edited by Stallion (edited 01-14-2003).]

[This message has been edited by Stallion (edited 01-14-2003).]

True - not a sure thing in any case. No recruit is a sure thing.
Thanks for the sanity reminder!

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR><font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Ikus:
<B>Giller actually transferred from OU to SMU, didn't he?</B></font><HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

In a way, yes. Like Bowen, Giller came here first, then went to OU for 2 years, then came back to SMU for his senior season.

Didn't dominate?!? The kid had over 1,700 yards and missed 2 games with a broken bone for goodness sakes!!!

If he gotten his average for the last 2 games he would have broken 2,000 rushing yards!